Articles - 'the' and 'a'

Question 1

What do you say instead of ‘a el’ or ‘de el’?

Answer 1

• NOT ‘a el’ but ‘al’*, e.g. ‘fui al parque’
• NOT ‘de el’ but ‘del’,* e.g. ‘voy a comprar esto del supermercado’

Question 2

When are definite articles needed (‘a’ or ‘the’)?

Answer 2

1. to express likes or dislikes, e.g. no me gusta el café
2. days of the weeks and times, e.g. todos los lunes y a las cinco
3. weights and measurements, e.g. dos euros el kilo
4. person’s titles, e.g. ¿cómo está el señor Martin?

Question 3

Rules of ‘a’ - un, una

Answer 3

‘a’ is left out:

1. after the verb ‘ser’ when talking about occupation or nationality, e.g. ‘soy estudiante’
2. **after a negative word, **e.g. ‘no tengo gato’
3. before ‘otro/a’, e.g. ¿quieres café?

when you make ‘a’ or ‘un/una’ plural:

they then mean ‘some’ or ‘few’:

e.g. pasé unos días en la playa